13 investigators from The Johns Hopkins University, comprising the School of Arts &Sciences (and the Department of Biology);the Whiting School of Engineering (and the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and the PS-OC Engineering in Oncology Center);and the Union Memorial Hospital and the Orthobiologic Laboratory request $519,686 to purchase a Sony Biotechnology Synergy SY3200 Cell sorter. This system will be sited in the Johns Hopkins'Integrated Imaging Center (IIC, ://www.jhu.edu/iic);and become the centerpiece of an upgraded BSL-2 cell sorting facility serving the diverse needs of the Hopkins'Homewood Campus and North Baltimore area generally. The IIC is a Homewood campus/Hopkins-wide microscopy resource, jointly supported by the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences and the Whiting School of Engineering (see Ball &Douglas letter);and utilized regularly by multiple schools and departments comprising >150 laboratories and >450 users. The new Synergy sorter will replace a BD FACSVantage SE with DIVA option whose antiquated design and complexity makes it difficult and costly to operate/use routinely;dangerous for the operator due to bio- containment concerns during sorting that necessarily limit sorting to BL-1 level specimens;and unreliable and problematic to maintain due to its age and lack of parts availability. The new iCyt Synergy SY3200 sorter incorporates a sorting head that is integrated into a Baker SterilGARD(R) lll hood making it particularly safe for the operator with the sorter operations/adjustments being affected remotely by computer. Nozzle exchange is simple and necessary alignments automated and computer controlled. Additionally, with the sorter head integrated into the Baker BSC, the design is particularly compact. When installed, the new system will provide a BSL-2 sorting capability not currently available in North Baltimore and on the Hopkins'Homewood campus. Currently, users must wait for weeks to gain access to sorters available at the Hopkins'East Baltimore or Bay View campuses located inconveniently five and ten miles away respectively. It will be incorporated into the IIC's existing, well established recharge system to ensure recovery of funds for supplies and maintenance;it will be made freely available to all interested users Hopkins-wide through workshops &hands-on training;and it will be incorporated into the Center for Biotechnology Education's Masters in Biotechnology curriculum;and the IIC's annual undergraduate/graduate course offerings. (://www.jhu.edu/iic/academic.htm).
